Support Amber's 3rd Brain Surgery

The donations collected are *SO GREATLY APPRECIATED* and will be used to help pay for my brain surgery, medical bills, and insurmountable debt so my family can have peace of mind during my recovery. Without this surgery, I run the risk of going fully blind. 

*READ MY STORY BELOW*

Laoch (n). Laoch (n.) {lay-ock} Warrior. A person of extraordinary strength, courage, vitality & valor.

Headaches were a part of my everyday life. They were as normal a routine as putting away the dishes, kissing the baby, or checking the mail so I didn't think much of them until they started crippling me from living a normal life.

In 2015 at the age of 34, I went to see an ENT who diagnosed me with severe sinus issues: a deviated septum, an impacted infection, all sorts of the yuckies, but it's what the radiologist saw on the CT scan that day that truly changed my life.

CRANIOPHARYNGIOMA. BRAIN TUMOR. Zero symptoms. There had been no signs. These tumors are 1 in a million and are usually found in very young children or in patients 65+. The Lord was looking out for me.

2017: I was told by a world-renowned neurosurgeon and head of the neurology department, that the tumor could be fully removed, and I was expected to have no complications following the procedure. I was thrilled, but I told my Dr I hoped to have one more baby before I had the surgery. He told me that wasn't a good idea, it was best if I went ahead and had the resection, and I could heal and have another baby after I recovered. I went into surgery without any symptoms from the tumor, but when I woke up, my entire life changed.

I woke up with zero peripheral vision and was deemed permanently and legally blind. I now have "panhypopituitarism" (panhypopit), meaning I have nearly zero pituitary function. I am on full hormone replacements. I am unable to drive. I take 8 pills 3 times a day. I can no longer have children. My surgeon walked out of my surgery follow-up hanging his head low and whispering, "I feel so defeated."

Gamma Knife Radiation: I had radiation immediately following the surgery, and it seemed to work for a couple of years. Until 2020.

2020: I was riding in the car one day with my husband and son, and I realized everything around me was doubling. I rushed to the emergency room to realize that a fluid-filled cyst was now forming on the tumor, and it was bumping up against my optic chiasm. I needed to have surgery ASAP to insert an ommaya reservoir so a catheter could be placed in my brain and drain the cyst when needed.

At this point, we were able to start our company Rise & Reboot Variety Shop our online thrift store. Because I couldn't work, I had to think of a way to pay our bills, and I started selling things online. From the graciousness of others, people started donating to us more than we could ever sell, and we were able to pay it forward and donate a large portion of clothes, shoes, household goods, supplies, and funds to groups Families Helping Families Mobile Food Truck, Friends of Joseph Field Manor, Berkeley County Animal Rescue, and more.  

2021: I received the absolutely JARRING news that the ommaya reservoir had worked the first time and the first cyst had collapsed, BUT a new cyst had formed on the opposite side, and I would need to have another catheter placed to drain the new one.

Y'all, I try so hard to stay positive. I try so hard to be a warrior and stay strong, but this time, I really need the encouragement to keep on pushing on. This is like a punch in the gut. I just got my hair back to normal too after the last surgery. Ugh! This sucks!

We are already financially strapped as it is because of what I have already been through. We *CANNOT* afford the third surgery, and we really need your help. Every little bit counts.

i have also created a line of shirts, sweatshirts, and hats featuring a Celtic shield knot which represents protection, camaraderie, strength, and support, and the Gaelic word “Laoch” meaning warrior, a person of extraordinary strength, courage, vitality, and valor. These can be purchased here: Laoch Line 

Thank you!